Doroth, a Brazilian deep tech company focused on lab-on-a-chip platforms for molecular diagnostics, has raised R$23 million in a funding round led by Loccus, a national biotechnology and molecular diagnostics firm. The investment combines private capital with public innovation funding from Finep and Fapesp. The announcement positions the partnership as a step toward domestic manufacturing of molecular testing components and broader access to decentralized diagnostics.
Complementary Capabilities Drive the Partnership
According to Loccus CEO Eduardo Araújo, the transaction was motivated by complementary strengths between the two companies. Loccus brings production capacity, innovation experience, and distribution channels across human and animal health, while Doroth contributes scientific knowledge, strong research capabilities, and proven ability to secure development funding. The combination is expected to create a more complete operation for developing and commercializing molecular diagnostics.
The companies plan to integrate Doroth's research and product development focus with Loccus manufacturing, regulatory support, infrastructure, and market channels. This integration is intended to shorten the path from technological development to commercial availability. It will also strengthen a national technology chain spanning enzymes, molecular assays, sensors, automated instruments, and microfluidic consumables.
Investment Targets Microfluidic Chip Production
The new resources will expand Doroth's research, development, and production structure, including the construction of a microfluidic chip factory with proprietary embedded reagents. Rodrigo Gurdos, founder and director of new business at Doroth, stated that the facility is intended to become the first microfluidic chip manufacturing plant in Latin America. The operation is expected to produce up to four million chips per year.
The plant will be fully automated, using precision robots to handle lyophilized beads that contain dehydrated reagents for molecular tests. It will also include autonomous production of proprietary enzymes for qPCR, LAMP, and Extreme PCR amplification techniques, including an enzyme capable of delivering results in less than five minutes. A delta robot assembly line will mount chips without direct human handling, supporting high-volume and contamination-free production.
Applications Across Agribusiness and Health
Doroth's platforms combine molecular biology, microfluidics, engineering, electronics, optics, automation, and software in compact automated equipment. The devices perform sample preparation, genetic material extraction, amplification, and result reading outside conventional laboratories. They can identify pathogens, microorganisms, genetically modified organisms, and resistance genes in leaves, seeds, grains, milk, and meat, supporting rapid decentralized testing at different stages of agricultural production.
The technology also detects viruses, bacteria, and other infectious agents in insect vectors such as the corn leafhopper and Aedes aegypti. This supports plant health and public health applications. Doroth is already developing projects with large agribusiness companies, and the Loccus partnership marks a transition from research and validation to industrial scale production.
Strategic Ecosystem and Advisory Support
The transaction expands Loccus's innovation strategy through open innovation, venture building, and corporate venture capital programs called Bios and Nanos. Since these initiatives were created, more than twenty deep tech startups have been selected to join the company's ecosystem. Bios focuses on biotechnology, health, agribusiness, molecular diagnostics, and bioeconomy, while Nanos concentrates on nanotechnology and advanced materials.
The round was supported by MOA Ventures, which advised Loccus on the investment structure and coordinates the Bios and Nanos programs. Doroth was advised exclusively by S4 Consultoria in structuring, negotiating, and closing the transaction. The collaboration aligns private investment with public funding to strengthen Brazil's national technology chain, reflecting a broader effort to combine scientific research with industrial scale production.
The R$23 million round marks a significant milestone for Brazilian deep tech and molecular diagnostics. By bringing together scientific research, industrial capacity, and public development funding, the collaboration aims to replace imported inputs with locally manufactured chips and reagents. If the production targets are met, the initiative could expand decentralized testing across agribusiness and strengthen the country's position in advanced life science technologies.
Source: Startups